(NewsNation Now) — It was another weekend of gun violence dotting the U.S. map.
Seven innocent bystanders were shot amid gang violence in New York City. Five were shot in a New Orleans French quarter once again teeming with tourists.
In Baton Rouge, police say a man went on a stabbing and shooting spree.
“He actually fired at two vehicles,” a spokesperson said. “There were two subjects in one vehicle that were both hit. He also fired at another vehicle, that subject was also hit.”
Fifty-one people were shot in Chicago; eight died.
It all comes as police are struggling to retain and recruit.
Police resignations were up 18% nationwide in 2020 compared to the previous year, according to a June survey from the Police Executive Research Forum.
Retirement numbers were even higher. Researchers found a 45% increase in the retirement rate in 2020 compared to 2019.
Outgoing Deputy Police Chief Chris Davis serves on a Portland department still feeling the reverberations of nationwide protests over last year’s murder of George Floyd.
“Nationally, there’s a crisis of confidence in our profession,” Davis said. “We have to be comfortable with that uncomfortable reality and start working through that.”
The city of Portland and Democratic Mayor Ted Wheeler, who also serves as police commissioner, dismantled some police specialty units. They’re now struggling to get officers to build them back.
Portland Lieutenant Greg Pashley said the violence is affecting everyone, including cops.
“It’s alarming. It’s disappointing,” Pashley said. “It’s horrifying to people who are suffering through it, and it’s something that as the police we want to be able to do something about.”